Chapter Two #2
“It is foolish, Charles,” she said, calling him the first name they had adopted for this incarnation of themselves.
They had created themselves out of whole cloth, something that they usually did not do, but it did afford them more freedom, pretending to be new money upstarts who had made a fortune in some sort of trade.
It was an expedient for them, something that Darcy did not have, not in his identity, which was stolen from a person who had actually existed.
“You have no reason to be jealous, you know.”
“I am not jealous,” said Bingley, stopping his pacing momentarily to get a glass of port, and then resuming it immediately, drink in hand.
“Jealous of whom?” said Darcy. “Of what?”
“You may do as you like,” said Bingley, gesturing with the hand not holding his wine glass. “You may call him whatever you like. You may make your eyes at him and simper that he is your heart as often as you wish. I have no interest in you at this current time, Caroline.”
Caroline rolled her eyes. “So you say.”
They were not actually brother and sister, Darcy knew. They traveled together, and they all did… things together. Even the women. Darcy could not say he had not been drawn into it all himself at various points.
Not in some time, however, he had to admit.
It all seemed like a relic of something long lost, something that he remembered, something that belonged to humans, not to them. His vampire body was capable of carnal things, kisses and caresses and more than that, all of it, but he had not used his prick for anything at all in decades.
“Jealous of me?” he said now, amused, surprised.
“No,” said Bingley, stopping his pacing to round on Darcy and glare. “I tell you, you and Caroline may do absolutely anything you like—”
“I do not wish to do anything with Caroline,” said Darcy, laughing.
Caroline shifted on her chair. “And I do not wish to do anything with either of you.” She laughed. “Bloody hell, boys, I find all of that to be rather boring now, I must say. I am tired of all of it.”
She swore sometimes when they were alone, though she wouldn’t say things that proper ladies shouldn’t say when they were in public. But this swear, the force of it, it struck Darcy as something else, that she was trying to convince them both of something that wasn’t entirely true.
He supposed he knew it, deep down.
His love affair with her had ended abruptly. She had been angry with him about it for years. They had come to some kind of peace between them, eventually, but he knew that she still harbored some feelings towards him. Whether they were tender or murderous depended on her mood, he supposed.
It was easier all around, however, if they all simply pretended that this wasn’t the case.
“Yes, tired of it, indeed,” he said, nodding at her, accepting what she said on the face of it, knowing she was lying to both of them and perhaps lying to herself.
“I still think you should go back to London,” said Bingley, resuming his pacing.
“We could all go back,” said Caroline.
“You two go if you like,” said Darcy, with a little smile.
Bingley turned and glared at him. “I tell you, I do not wish to do anything with Caroline.”
“Neither,” said Darcy, “do I.” He took a long drink of port.
“Leave Darcy’s sirensong be,” said Bingley to Caroline.
“Oh, are you ordering me about now?” said Caroline.
“Perhaps you should find some plaything,” said Bingley. “Something to occupy yourself.”
“What if I want to play with your toys?” said Caroline, shrugging, smiling. “Won’t you boys share?”
“Play how?” said Bingley, taking a drink of wine.
ELIZABETH’S SISTER JANE had been invited to dine at Netherfield one evening. It had been a rather strange invitation, such a late invite, and for Jane alone, no one else. But Jane was to dine with the two Bingley women. The gentlemen were apparently dining elsewhere in town.
Mrs. Bennet, Elizabeth’s mother, forced Jane to go on horseback, for it seemed likely to rain, and she wished Jane to be stuck at the house with no way home in the rain.
But the Bingley sisters simply sent Jane home in their carriage that night, in the rain, and Jane came back quite tired. She had little to say about the dinner or anything that had occurred, only that she’d had a lovely time, and that she wished she hadn’t had to leave.
That night, after the rain ended, Jane sat straight up in bed sometime after midnight.
Elizabeth and Jane shared a bed, so it woke Elizabeth right away.
Jane got out of bed, wordless, and began to dress herself.
“Jane, what are you doing?” said Elizabeth, but Jane made no answer. She hummed to herself, doing her best to lace her own stays.
Elizabeth got up out of bed and took her sister by the shoulders. “Jane, please, listen to me.”
“Shh, Lizzy, it’s a secret,” said Jane, smiling dreamily at her. “Tell no one.”
“Jane, dearest Jane, I would keep any of your secrets, but why are you getting dressed in the midst of the night?”
Except Jane would not say. She left the room and crept down the stairs, and Elizabeth was obliged to get dressed as well and to follow Jane down the stairs and out of their house, Longbourn.
The rain had stopped, but the air was still wet and the ground was still wet.
Elizabeth could see that Jane was halfway across the lawn, walking off into the night, the hem of her dress getting quite wet, and Elizabeth debated about going and waking her father, who would certainly stop this.
However, this was her sister Jane, her favorite person in all the world, and Jane had asked her not to tell anyone. Elizabeth did not wish to betray her sister.
So, she scampered off after Jane.
But after catching up with her sister, she began to think that Jane was, in fact, sleepwalking or something. She would not answer any of Elizabeth’s queries about what was going on, and she only hummed a great deal and said, “Tell no one,” again and again.
By this time, however, they had walked too far in the darkness and over the wet grass and the mud for Elizabeth to feel as if she could leave Jane by herself. Why, she might get herself very lost or very hurt.
Elizabeth resolved that she would simply stay close to her sister and try to keep her from harming herself, and that she would wait until Jane woke. For Jane must eventually wake. Then they would make their way back home and they would all have a laugh about it in the morning.
They walked and walked, however, and Jane didn’t wake.
Eventually, Elizabeth realized they were going back to Netherfield.
The estate was all lit up, even this late at night. Lamps shone at the windows and Elizabeth could see movement inside, people going to and fro in front of the windows.
A servant met them at the door. “Curious house, this, and curious way of conducting visitation,” muttered the servant.
“But if they are all up all night, why not have visitors in the night too, I suppose. I shan’t even inquire, not with the salary I am being given.
Paid too much to ask questions, I am.” Raising his voice, the servant said to Elizabeth and Jane, “This way, ladies.”
Elizabeth and Jane both had skirts that were soaked at the ends, with mud inches thick on the hems.
They were taken into a sitting room where Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bingley, Mr. Hurst, and both of the Bingley sisters were at cards.
“Damnation, Caroline, what have you done?” exploded Bingley when he saw them.
Caroline Bingley threw back her head and laughed.
“Why is she here?” said Mr. Darcy, glaring at Elizabeth.
Caroline turned to look back at Elizabeth.
“Oh, dear, I have no notion. She should not be here. It should only be the other one. I put a little suggestion in earlier tonight, you see. I thought we could all send her back before morning, have her climb back in bed with no memory of it. We haven’t had playthings in ever so long, really, and you said I could play, Charles. ”
“I said you could invite her to dinner!” said Mr. Bingley, coming over to look at Jane, turning her face this way and that. “Did you drink from her, Caroline?”
Drink from her? Elizabeth furrowed her brow. Hadn’t someone else said something about drinking at one point? She could not quite remember, but she thought…
“No, that was to be now,” said Caroline. “Though Louisa wished to.”
“Well, she is rather luscious,” said Louisa.
“I thought you could marry this one, because everyone in this little town thinks you wish to marry her, Charles, and wouldn’t that be a bit of fun.
” She patted her husband’s knee. “She could keep John company. I’m sure he misses having other humans around. ”
Other humans? Elizabeth took Jane’s hand. “Come, dearest. Let us go.”
“Why are you here?” said Caroline, walking across the room toward Elizabeth. “Did you see her leave?”
“I saw her get out of bed,” said Elizabeth. “We share a room.”
“Ah,” said Caroline.
“Would you get her out of the room, Caroline?” said Mr. Darcy. “I can smell her from here.”
Caroline smirked at Elizabeth and Jane both.
“We are going to have to go back to London!” cried Mr. Bingley. “I think you’re ruining this on purpose, Caroline, that’s what I think.”
“We’ll charm them both,” said Caroline. “Let’s send word back that the eldest is sick and the other is staying to nurse her back to health. We can keep them days, maybe, have a great deal of fun with them both.”
“Why would she come here in the middle of the night?” said Mr. Bingley.
“I don’t think it’s wise to have my sirensong under the same roof as me,” said Mr. Darcy, who sounded furious.
His what? And why did Elizabeth like being his? She felt something tingle at her neck and she covered the spot with one hand, gazing at him.
“I shall go now,” said Caroline, “and charm the family, make them all think that the eldest stayed overnight because of illness. They’ll never even remember that she came home at all.”
“Only if you take Miss Elizabeth, too,” said Mr. Darcy.
“How many times have we charmed that one?” said Mr. Bingley.
“I’m not going anywhere without Jane,” said Elizabeth stoutly. She tugged on her sister’s hand again. “Jane, my darling, we are leaving right now.” She pulled hard, but Jane didn’t move, simply stared off into the distance, her eyes unfocused. Elizabeth let out a cry of dismay.
And Caroline was there, cupping Elizabeth’s face, looking directly into her eyes. “With me, my lovely,” murmured Caroline. “Be in my gaze.”
Elizabeth shook her head, because she was remembering now, Mr. Darcy’s voice, low and sure, Are you with me? She turned to look at him, all astonishment. “You kissed me.”
“Blazes,” said Mr. Darcy. “She’s shaken the charm quickly, has she not?”
“Well, then, no question,” said Caroline. “Neither of them can go home.”
Elizabeth rubbed at the spot on her neck, and she let out a whimper. “You… bit me,” she said in a very small voice.
“This is a disaster, Caroline,” said Mr. Darcy, practically snarling.
Caroline only laughed.